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Keith Bennett will remain "in the possession" of Moors murderers Ian Brady and Myra Hindley until his body is found, the victim's brother has said.

Alan Bennett said the death of his mother, Winnie must not be seen as closure to the case as the family vowed to continue the fight to locate the remains of the 12-year-old.

Keith Bennett's body is still yet to be found. Credit: Press Association

Brady, who is 74, has been urged by police to "at last do the decent thing" and finally tell them where he buried him on Saddleworth Moor above Manchester so Keith can be given a Christian burial.

Writing on his website, www.searchingforkeith.com, Mr Bennett, who was nine when his brother was taken off the street by Brady and the late Hindley, said: "As far as I am concerned, until Keith is found then he is still in the possession of Brady and Hindley.

"Our fear as a family is that now my mother is no longer with us, this may be seen by the police and the media as some sort of closure to the case.

"This must not be allowed to happen both out of respect for Keith and my mother's memory and for those of us who loved them both."

Martin Bottomley, head of investigative review of Greater Manchester Police's major and cold case crime unit, has paid tribute to Winnie Johnson.

He said: "Our thoughts are with Winnie's family at this very difficult and sad time. Winnie spent the majority of her life courageously fighting to get justice for Keith.

Winnie Johnson attends a memorial service for her son Keith Bennett. Credit: Press Association

"All she wanted was to know where Keith was buried so she could lay him to rest."Sadly, almost all of her life, she has had to live with the knowledge that Ian Brady refused to show compassion and do the right thing and disclose where he had buried her little boy.

"Winnie was a tenacious and courageous woman and I wish that in her lifetime she could have found where Keith was buried."The only comfort we can take is that she is now at peace with the little boy she missed so much.

"We are continuing to examine the documentation we seized to establish whether or not this letter even exists.

"Notwithstanding that, there is only one person who knows where Keith is buried and that is Ian Brady himself. I would implore him at this extremely sad time and knowing that Winnie has died not knowing where Keith is buried to at last do the decent thing and tell us where he is."

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In a statement, John Ainley, Winnie Johnson's solicitor, said: "It is a terrible tragedy and I would ask the media to respect Winnie's family's wishes to be left to grieve in private at this distressing time.

"She will be sadly missed and was much loved by her family and friends."

Winnie Johnson digging with her 23 year old son Joey, on Saddleworth Moor near Manchester in 1988. Credit: Press Association

Mr Ainley had represented her legal interests for the last few years and has reaffirmed her beliefs that Brady still holds the key to her son's burial spot.

"Over the years and in all our personal meetings, Winnie has insisted Brady is the only person who could put her mind to rest and give her the chance to give Keith a decent burial before she passed away," he said.

"She was convinced Brady knew where her son was buried and she told me she wanted the search to continue to find Keith.

"Despite her personal appeals directly to Brady and via my office, Brady had persistently ignored the wishes of a grieving mother.

"She has died without knowing Keith's whereabouts and without the opportunity to finally put him at rest in a decent grave.

"It is a truly heartbreaking situation that this opportunity has now been irrevocably lost.

"Winnie's health deteriorated in the last few days. She died not knowing of the letter's possible existence but the steadfast conviction Ian Brady can resolve the situation."

Her 12-year-son's killer, Ian Brady, has always refused to disclose the location of Keith's body on Saddleworth Moor above Manchester.Keith was taken by Brady and his partner, Myra Hindley on June 16 1964, after he left home to visit his grandmother.

The statement reads: "Winnie Johnson, the mother of Keith Bennett, died this morning at 12.35am, aged 78. She was a much loved mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, and is survived by one younger brother. Winnie fought tirelessly for decades to find Keith and give him a Christian burial.

"Although this was not possible during her lifetime, we, her family, intend to continue this fight now for her and for Keith. We hope that the authorities and the public will support us in this.

"We would like to express our deep gratitude to all the medical staff who cared for Winnie during her illness, and also the public for their good wishes and support over the years.

"We hope that everyone will understand, however, that we would like to grieve for her in private, both at this time and during her funeral."